Sociodemographic profile and quality of life of active older adults belonging to a physical exercise program and sedentary elderly, linked to a basic health unit

Objective: To identify the sociodemographic profile and to compare the quality of life of elderly people who practice physical exercises in a group with sedentary elderly. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach, composed of two groups: Group I consisted of 50 elderly people practicing physical exercise in a group; and Group II composed of 50 sedentary elderlies. Data were collected through two questionnaires; one questionnaire focused on the sociodemographic data survey and the SF-36 quality of life questionnaire. The data were analyzed by the BioEstat 5.0 program using the Z-Test. Results: Group I had better scores in the domains, limitations due to physical aspects and general health, in the other domains, group II had better scores. Factor that can be attributed to the modality of the physical exercise performed by group I that was in the group I and by the form of the allocation of the sample. Conclusion: The women were mostly in group I, and both groups were comprised of seniors over 61 years old, widowers and retirees. Statistically, only the general state of health showed a significant difference between the two groups.